Country Soul © 2022 Cara Whitney All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc. Names and identifying characteristics of some individuals have been changed to preserve their privacy. Published in association with the literary agency of WordServe Literary Group, Ltd., www.wordserveliterary.com. Photographs on pages 4, 6, 11, 19, 22, 27, 32, 44, 48, 56-57, 65, 74, 82, 90, 98, 135, 142, 146, 152, 154, 160, 169, 175, 176, and 200 are by Erik Johnson, erikjohnsonphotography.com. Photo on page 71 is by Joel Sartore. The remaining photos are used under license from Shutterstock.com. Thomas Nelson titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fundraising, or sales promotional use. For information, please email SpecialMarkets@ThomasNelson.com. Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.® Scripture quotations marked cev are taken from the Contemporary English Version. Copyright © 1991, 1992, 1995 by American Bible Society. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked esv are taken from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked nasb are taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB). Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org Scripture quotations marked nirv are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®. Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIrV” and “New International Reader’s Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.® Scripture quotations marked nlt are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked nrsv are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible. Copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Any internet addresses, phone numbers, or company or product information printed in this book are offered as a resource and are not intended in any way to be or to imply an endorsement by Thomas Nelson, nor does Thomas Nelson vouch for the existence, content, or services of these sites, phone numbers, companies, or products beyond the life of this book. Cover design by Jennifer Greenwalt Interior design by Kristy Edwards ISBN 978-1-4002-3381-6 (audiobook) ISBN 978-1-4002-3380-9 (eBook) ISBN 978-1-4002-3378-6 (HC)
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GETTING THE UPPER HOOF Shun youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Have nothing to do with stupid and senseless controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kindly to everyone, an apt teacher, patient, correcting opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant that they will repent and come to know the truth, and that they may escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will. 2 TIMOTHY 2:22–26 nrsv
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W
hen Lynn’s husband, Bob, set out to bathe their first broodmare, a dark brown beauty named Sugar, he had no idea the challenge he faced. After four years of racking up championships across the county, Sugar knew more about wash racks than Bob did. And Sugar had an attitude. The horse planted her hooves five feet from the broad concrete slab. Bob tried to pull her, coax her, and pick at her, but she wouldn’t move. Lynn could see that Sugar was cool, calm, and self-centered, reminding her of a Hollywood starlet yawning while examining her manicure. “What’s wrong with this stubborn horse?” Bob shouted in desperation. “I can’t get her to budge.” Why did Sugar refuse? Because she could. A big grin stretched across Lynn’s face. “You’re right,” she said with a chuckle. “Sugar isn’t going anywhere with you. That’s because she’s being a pig.” (Pig is the equestrian term for diva.) Frustrated, Bob handed Lynn the lead rope. After the experienced horse trainer had a little talk with Sugar—brushing her and telling her what she thought of her horse’s behavior—Sugar sweetly walked into the wash rack while Lynn’s husband fumed behind them. Lynn pointed out that horses give us the gift of simplicity—seeing the world through their eyes. “There is no pretense with these animals,” she explained to Bob. “They’re direct and only say what they mean.” Horses also give us insight into ourselves—our own strengths and weaknesses, she told him. “Folks often assume that the horse is at fault when it fails to learn a lesson. It’s more likely that the horse either didn’t know what to do, or it didn’t trust you . . . or maybe it simply beat you at your own game.” And that day, Sugar got the upper hoof!5
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WISDOM FROM THE HORSE FARM The Holy Spirit enables us to avoid quarreling with each other.
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*** Staring down fifteen hundred pounds of stubborn horse can teach us how to learn faith and focus. Horses are as simple and silly as three-year-old children but as wise as Yoda. They help us carry the weight of worthy leadership. Horses also help us understand that limited commitment always produces limited results and that love is the most powerful motivator. Lynn’s thirty years as a horse trainer, most of them working with stallions, taught her to be simple and direct and to own every word, action, and breath. In her years as a Christian, she’s learned that God lightens burdens, speaks into our needs, holds us, shakes us, teaches us, and sends us. Step-by-step, lesson by lesson, the Holy Spirit helps us become more like Jesus: The Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will. (2 Timothy 2:24–26 esv)
Each of us has been called to serve, to make disciples the same way Jesus did. No matter our audience, flock, or herd, our job is guiding others to a relationship with Jesus—and ultimately to transformative faith. And there are so many ways we can do this. For me it’s natural to use stories from the horse farm as a way to talk about Jesus.
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The fact is, I’m a pony person. Either you are or you aren’t. It’s as simple as that. I have heard my whole life how “mean” Shetland ponies are in particular, and I’ll admit I’ve seen scars and I’ve heard battle stories of all the times ponies have cut loose on kids: running them into fences, bucking them off in the dirt, and biting them in the seat. The idea is that if they can make the kid afraid of them, then they’ll be put out to pasture and never have to work. Ponies are stinkers, but they are also thinkers. So be still my beating heart! I love ponies! Especially my Shetland pony, Tucker. Just writing his name makes my heart brim over with all the feels. I purchased Tucker years ago. I had originally bought him for my kids, and because I know that Shetland ponies do have Be still my a reputation for being a handful, I made sure Tucker was vetted beating for anything that would be problematic. heart! I used Tucker as a way to train my kids on how to behave I love around horses. I had sought out a pony whose reaction to their ponies! mistakes wasn’t to kick or to bite. He did let Reagan slide off his back a few times and into the dirt. That’s where his forty-inch stature is ideal. Ponies aren’t completely different from full-size horses; they’re just better gifted at honing in on our weaknesses and then using them to their advantage—which also makes Shetland ponies extremely comical and so very charming. Tucker has been known to flip manure carts, steal tools right out of tool belts, and run away with manure forks. He took full advantage of my old barnyard helper Lindsay. Except when I was also present; then Tucker was a perfect gentleman.
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Lindsay was always curious as to why that was. I would say, “Tucker knows who butters his bread, Lindsay.” Also, as long as you allow Tucker to get away with these kinds of hijinks, he will always have the upper hand. Unfortunately, sometimes Satan also can get the upper hand on us no matter how schooled we are in Scripture, because we are weak in the flesh. As much as we accuse Shetland ponies of being troublemakers, humans are also a handful! All Satan has ever done is observe the weakness of man and make ways for us to fail miserably. He gets in our heads, and suddenly we believe we lack the tools necessary to be useful to God. Satan steals from us, he flips our hope on its head, and he trips us up as we run. Not charming! We respond by either lashing out in fear or refusing to move at all. But Jesus will never put us out to pasture and leave us there. He won’t take us out of this race because of our inabilities or weakness. The Holy Spirit is direct with us; He corrects us, then uses our mistakes to His advantage. Jesus keeps it simple: He tells us only to “follow” Him. If we are willing to do that without ceasing, our weakness will reveal His glory to those who are watching in a way that’s almost charming.
Lord, Your Word today instructs me to not be quarrelsome but kindly to everyone. Show me how to do this, and redirect my steps when I’m in danger of veering off Your path. Show me how to set the example for younger believers—ever patient, correcting opponents with gentleness. Give me opportunities to make disciples. Amen.
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